Best Restaurant For Elevated Home Cooking That Doesn’t Look Like Elevated Home Cooking
Nora’s
667 San Carlos St., Carmel
(831) 250-7447, norascarmel.com
The county’s only Michelin star restaurants are in Carmel, as are posh hotels. And then there is Nora’s, with a menu featuring such common fare as meatloaf with mashed potatoes and gravy, chicken pot pie, twice-baked potatoes and a bologna sandwich – all looking as if they had been prepared by mom or grandma… except that the chef is shared with Anton & Michel (see Best Restaurant - Carmel), so every touch is with a purpose, such as good mortadella instead of bland bologna, on brioche with a mustard aioli and skilled technique that yields just enough crackle from the grill.